Child Care, Low Income and High Income in Massachusetts Child Support

By the FigureMyTax Editorial Team · How we calculate

Massachusetts protects low-income payors with minimum orders of $15 to $33 a week, shares child care up to $430 a week per child in proportion to income, deducts health care premiums from income and applies the guidelines to combined income up to $450,000, with support above that at the court’s discretion.

Minimum orders

To protect a basic subsistence level, a payor with gross income of $301 a week or less should have an order of no more than $15 a week, and a payor with gross income between $302 and $391 a week an order of no more than $33 a week (Guidelines section II.C). The first two tranches of Table A are 100% and 130% of the federal poverty guideline for one person. In the example, a payor earning $350 a week owes $25: $15 plus 20% of the $49 above $301. The court can set any higher or lower amount, including $0, as a deviation.

The $450,000 limit

The guidelines are calculated up to combined available income of $450,000 a year, $8,654 a week. Above that, support at the $450,000 level is the minimum presumptive order, and the support on the excess is at the court’s discretion, with any percentage below the 10% of the top tranche. With $9,700 a week combined, the excess is $1,046 and the presumptive order is $1,134.

Child care

Reasonable out-of-pocket child care costs actually paid after discounts or subsidies, up to $430 a week per child, are shared in proportion to available income when the care is needed for gainful employment, job training or education that improves earning capacity. Summer camps count only if they are really child care. If a cost is above the cap, only the capped part is shared. A parent claiming the cost must give reasonable evidence.

Health care and dental/vision

Each parent may deduct from gross income the reasonable cost of the individual or family health care premium he or she pays, and the dental/vision premium for the children, though the court can limit the deduction if it covers persons not in the order. Coverage is reasonable in cost if it is no more than 5% of the parent’s gross income. The recipient pays the first $250 a year of routine uninsured medical costs, and the court allocates costs above that.

Children 18 to 23

The court has discretion to order support for a child 18 or older who is principally dependent on a parent; Table C reduces the amount (the nominal reduction is 25% of the incremental amount for that child). A child 18 or older still in high school is treated as under 18. College costs are separate: a parent cannot be ordered to pay more than 50% of UMass Amherst in-state costs unless he or she can afford it.

Questions to bring to an attorney

Ask whether your child care qualifies, whether your health premium may be deducted in full and whether the 40% hardship presumption could apply.

Deviation

The court may depart from the guidelines with written findings that the amount would be unjust or inappropriate, the specific facts and that the departure is in the child’s best interests. Listed circumstances include special needs, extraordinary expenses, parenting time, a payor who is incarcerated without resources, and an inability to self-support. An order of 40% or more of the payor’s available income is presumed to be a substantial hardship.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• 2025 Massachusetts Child Support Guidelines (effective December 1, 2025)
• Child Support Guidelines Worksheet (CJD 304), 2025
• Massachusetts Trial Court: Child Support Guidelines

This is general information, not legal advice. It is based on the cited Massachusetts statutes, rules and court opinions, and every case turns on its own facts. Confirm how the law applies to your situation with a licensed Massachusetts attorney.